Central Brighton was brought to a standstill last night after a bomb scare at a fast food restaurant.

Two men raised the alarm after they found a suspect device in the London Road branch of McDonald's.

Police cordoned off the entire stretch of London Road from St Peter's Church to Preston Circus for about three hours after they were told of the device at 6pm.

Rush-hour traffic trailed back to Preston Park as drivers were diverted away from the area while bomb disposal officers carried out a controlled explosion.

The device was found to be a fake.

Inspector Alan Costello of Brighton Police said: "Just before 6pm, a small, suspicious device was brought to the attention of the manager of McDonald's.

"It has now been disrupted and it turned out to be a hoax.

"We have taken the situation very seriously, as you can see. We are being extremely vigilant."

Insp Costello said this was the third bomb scare since the start of the Labour Party conference.

An estimated 150 people were evacuated, mainly from Somerfield and Sainsbury's.

Police are appealing for information about who may have left the device.